Freelance designer turned entrepreneur, and all-around good-guy Benny Gold is someone I’ve been following online for almost a year now and someone I really want to share with all of you loyal readers out there (I’m looking at you Jeff Smith). Benny started as a freelance designer, working for design firms and ad agencies out of college, but has really blown up over the last couple of months. Just earlier this week, Benny opened up his first flagship store carrying his own signature clothing line in San Francisco. Already, Benny has a solid (and growing) fan base online.
This is of course not without reason. There really is a lot to appreciate about Benny's clothing line, his brand, and Benny himself:
Benny, first and foremost, is not only passionate about what he does, but he’s also good at it. There are so many “designers” and streetwear label owners out there that aren't actually trained in the discipline of design. Most of the biggest labels in the “underground” streetwear scene such as Supreme, The Hundreds, and Diamond Supply Co. put out pretty mediocre stuff 90% of the time. Without the hype and mindless consumerism, most of the stuff they carry would never sell. It's hard to explain how their stuff is poorly designed without getting pretty technical and/or subjective, but I can if any of you readers out there want me to. Just keep in mind that all of this is coming from someone who is into the streetwear scene and really appreciates the culture surrounding it, but is also studying design and knows (or at least thinks he does) bad design when he sees it. What sets Benny apart is that he actually went to an art school, has a good eye for design, and puts it to use in his clothing line.
Benny’s brand, and what it stands for, is also pretty thoughtful and reflective of the transitioning point in his life (as well as that of his fans). In a video highlight with Hypebeast, Benny explains that his paper plane logo is a symbol of youth, but when in motion, it’s also a symbol of growth. Cheesy? Maybe, but it's much more inspired than "The Hundreds is Huge" or Supreme's motto of "IDGAF."
If you can’t appreciate good design and don’t care for what Benny's brand stands for, you have to be at least be able to appreciate the fact that Benny is a self-starter and a genuinely nice person. He started out just putting up stickers, the same way Shepard Fairey did, but has really grown over the years and is on his way up to be the next Johnny Cupcakes (if you don't know who Johnny Cupcakes is, make sure you peep the link; he has a great story behind his brand). Personally, the reason why I connect so well with Benny is because one of my (tentative) life goals is to be someone like him - the Creative Director of my own clothing line and business.
OTHER LINKS
[Video] About Benny Gold
[Video] Benny Gold Store & Office Tour
[Blog] Benny Gold Blog
UPDATE 04/30/10
Wow. Within hours after I posted this, Benny actually made a blog post about Johnny Cupcakes. What a coinkidink! I wonder if Benny noticed I linked to his blog and am saying all this good stuff about him. If so... hi Benny!
No comments:
Post a Comment